No travel restrictions for Zika

Scientists believe the virus attacks the baby’s brain, triggering microcephaly, a condition in which newborns have abnormally small heads, impaired vision and brain damage.

“We will undoubtedly see many travelers returning to the USA with Zika”, Frieden said.

The letter goes on to spell out much of the information that’s already been relayed by the World Health Organization and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control.

The number of people infected with the Zika virus in the USA now tops 50. The CDC has recommended that pregnant women avoid traveling to regions where the Zika virus is known to be active.

The second case, also confirmed in November, was a 16-year-old teenager who died in October in the northwestern state of Para.

“We are focusing on pregnant women and women in the reproductive age range who may become pregnant”, Dr. Miller said.

The Zika virus is discouraging increasing numbers of Americans from travelling to the Caribbean and Latin America, with 41 percent of those aware of the disease saying they are less likely to take such a trip, according to a new Reuters/Ipsos poll.

The mosquito that carries the Zika virus is not native to NY.

“The International Olympic Committee is not considering postponing the games in Brazil this fall in the wake of the Zika virus’s spread, the group’s top medical official said Thursday”.

The USOC will hire two infectious disease specialists to advise potential Olympians who are anxious about the Zika outbreak in Brazil.

The White House’s $1.8 billion funding request followed a WHO emergency declaration last week that the Zika virus is now a global health threat.

If research proves that the virus can be spread through sex, it could complicate efforts to contain infections from the virus. Secondly, there have actually been no local transmission in the United States so far. Some of the recommendations and actions will be similar to the city’s approach to combating the West Nile virus, which may include spraying mosquito breeding areas.

The Zika virus, which is suspected of causing birth defects in children, is transmitted primarily through a mosquito bite, but there are also cases of transmission through blood transfusion and sexual contact.